Steampunk 101: From Sci-Fi Sub-genre to Cultural Phenomenon on AbeBooks: The creation of the ‘steampunk’ term is usually attributed to the science fiction author K.W. Jeter, who used it in a letter to Locus Magazine. He was trying to find a way to describe Victorian fantasy novels like those written by himself (Morlock Night and Infernal Devices), Tim Powers (The Anubis Gates) and James Blaylock (Homunculus).

Gladys Knight and the Pips member William Guest dies at 74 - AOL: William Guest, a member of Gladys Knight and the Pips, has died. He was 74. Guest performed throughout the lifespan of the Grammy-winning group from 1953 to 1989. He performed background vocals on hits such as "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" and "Midnight Train to Georgia." Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.

Friday, December 25, 2015

Working on the theory that nobody would be at Star Wars on Christmas Eve, Angela, Allen, Tom, and I decided to go. It worked out fine. There weren't more than thirty people in the theater, which is about how I like it. We all got a big kick out of the movie, which we saw at a Cinemark with XD, which just means a bigger than usual screen, and 3D, which, well, you know what that means. We all enjoyed the movie, and I was encouraged to dig around in the back of the closet and bring out the t-shirt that I bought back in 1977 to wear. Since it was 82 degrees, a t-shirt was the right kind of apparel. As for the movie, Harrison Ford stole the show as far as I was concerned, not that Daisy Ridley wasn't terrific. John Boyega was good, too. But Ford looked like he was having a wonderful time. All the old friends were there, and I'm ready for the sequel. At my age, I can only hope they get it made soon.

In 1965 Judy and I were living in our little apartment on Normal Street in Denton and having our first Christmas together. We bought our little tree (that's it on the left) at an A&P grocery store and immediately decided that would be our Christmas tradition. I don't know how many years after that we bought our trees at A&P, but the tradition lasted for all our Austin years and extended into the Brownwood years for a while. The decorations on that tree are some of the ones on our tree this year. Eventually we decided it was time to get an artificial tree because the real ones were causing problems. The needles they dropped on the carpet were bad enough, clogging up the vacuum and almost burning up the motor. The tree was so dry by the time Christmas rolled around that it was a serious fire hazard. We found a plastic tree on sale at T.G.&Y. after Christmas and bought it to use the next year. It wasn't long afterward that the A&P in Brownwood closed its doors forever, but I'm sure there was no connection.The artificial tree inspired me to poetic heights I've never reached since. I may have posted this poem before, but here it is again:PLASTIC XMASUnderneath my plastic treeare plastic presents, wrapped with gleeand plastic tape as you can see.Nearby there's a nativity(made of plastic, naturally)with its plastic babe fast asleepand plastic shepherds that quietly creep,as plastic angels from the rooftop peep.Beside it stand my plastic wife, my plastic children . . .my plastic life.

The New York Times: Angela McEwan, whose late-in-life acting résumé included a brief but memorable turn as the former flame of a hapless old man played by Bruce Dern in the Oscar-nominated 2013 film “Nebraska,” died on Sunday in Long Beach, Calif. She was 81. Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.

The New York Times: Snuff Garrett, a former Texas disc jockey who was forsaken by his own music teachers but became a millionaire by the time he was 30 producing records for Bobby Vee, Del Shannon, Gary Lewis & the Playboys and other artists, died on Dec. 16 in Tucson. He was 76.Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.

Wednesday, December 23, 2015

Salem-News.Com: George Clayton Johnson wrote the very first episode of Star Trek, The Man Trap; he wrote eight original Twilight Zone episodes for series creator Rod Serling including "Nothing in the Dark", "Kick the Can", "A Game of Pool", and "A Penny for Your Thoughts".Update: Locus has taken down its notice of the death of George Clayton Johnson. Apparently the reports were greatly exaggerated.

Top names of the 1960s: The following table shows the 200 most popular given names for male and female babies born during 1960 - 1969. For each rank and sex, the table shows the name and the number of occurrences of that name. The 200 most popular names were taken from a universe that includes 19,617,720 male births and 18,899,276 female births.

Blogger Buzz: An update on Google Friend Connect: We encourage you to tell affected readers (perhaps via a blog post), that if they use a non-Google Account to follow your blog, they need to sign up for a Google Account, and re-follow your blog. With a Google Account, they’ll get blogs added to their Reading List, making it easier for them to see the latest posts and activity of the blogs they follow. We know how important followers are to all bloggers, but we believe this change will improve the experience for both you and your readers.

NY Daily News: Patricia Elliott, who won a Tony Award on her Broadway musical debut, went on to star opposite David Bowie in "The Elephant Man" and spent 23 years aboard the TV soap opera "One Life to Live," has died. She was 77. Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.

That's right, The Musketeer. Singular. The guide that pops up on my TV screen refers to the movie as a "loose adaptation" of Dumas' famous novel. That sounds about right. The guide also tells me that the movie is sitting on about 11% "fresh" on Rotten Tomatoes. That sounds about right, too. But here's the thing: As much as I decry unnecessary remakes, I'll watch any movie that's based on The Three Musketeers because I love the story and have ever since I saw the Gene Kelly version when I was a kid. I took a look at some of the reviews on Rotten Tomatoes. Wow. Some of those people despised this movie. They loathed it. You might not be surprised, however, to hear that I got a big kick out of it. See, what this is, is a Hong Kong version of The Three Musketeers, with action scenes designed by Xin-Xin Xiong, a fairly big name in that field. So let's get this straight right from the start: The movie's about the action scenes. There's no acting required, and the stars live up to that idea (with one exception, which I'll get to). Catherine Deneuve (the queen) is beautiful, and Mena Suvari (the sweet confidant) isn't bad. Justin Chambers (D'Artagnan) is dashing and handsome. Stephen Rea, as Cardinal Richelieu, hardly bothers. Everybody pronounces D'Artagnan's name differently. The plot doesn't make any sense. Aramis, Pothos, and Athos are just afterthoughts (Athos hardly appears at all). But the action scenes make up for all of that. And so does Tim Roth.You might recall that Tim Roth was the villainous villain in Rob Roy, which I talked about last week. He was so villainous that I didn't think anyone could top him, and maybe that's true. However, he can top himself. He plays Febre, whose motiveless malignity is a wonder to behold. If there's such a thing as overplaying by underplaying, Roth has mastered that ability, and he shows it here with magnificent restraint and all the best lines in the movie, but it's not so much the lines as the delivery. Samples:D'Artagnan: Do not harm her!Febre the Man in Black: But, I feel the need to harm someone.****The Queen: I will die before I help you.Febre the Man in Black: Well, you wouldn't be the first.****The Queen: Is there no mercy in your heart?Febre: No mercy. No heart.There are a good many more. The others have some good lines, too, but Roth is far and away the best at this kind of thing.Now about those action scenes. I'll just mention a couple. One of them is the stagecoach chase that you've seen in a hundred old westerns, but never quite like this. There are a few dozen men (who's counting?) pursuing the coach, and D'Artagnan defeats every single one of them with any number of amazing stunts, including one in which he stands on the saddle of one horse and jumps to the saddle of another and lands standing on it. And just for fun, the classic stunt of falling off the front of the coach, hitting the ground between the running horses, and then pulling up on the rear of the coach is here, too. It's a fine scene.The finale comes after D'Artagnan climbs a rope up the side of a castle tower, sword fighting with men who drop down on their own ropes to tangle with him. They don't stand a chance, of course. When he gets inside the tower, he finds the queen and Mena Suvari. And of course, Febre. The big finale begins, and it's right out of some Jackie Chan movie I saw once. They fight their way into a big warehouse full of wine barrels and ladders. Many ladders. The climax of the battle comes on these ladders, and you have to see it to disbelieve it. Great stuff. Guess who wins.BONUS: This is the only musketeers movie ever to have jokes about crocodiles in the sewers. Really. It was great. Sometimes I think I'm the sole target audience for a movie. This might be one of those times.So once again we have a movie that nobody likes but me. Or maybe you'll get a kick out of it if you approach it in the right spirit. Buckle on your swash and give it a try.

Here's what I'm trying to figure out these days: What's up with Walnut?The reason why I'm pondering this question is that for months now I've been getting e-mails from concerned individuals who happen to believe I live in Walnut. For example:We don't know if you happen to heard good news but Obama has launched an innovative program to let you fund your own home.This system is actually for individuals living in the area of Walnut. And:Pedophile Alert in Walnut area!And: Hey there , I know you live near me at Walnut.I want to meet you if you're still interested by me? Clearly this Walnut is a happening place. I almost wish I did live there.

Where the Wild Books Are: Needle-in-a-haystack stories are the caffeine of collecting. Who hasn’t heard a tale of someone finding a rare toy at a garage sale, a dust-covered antique in an attic, or a priceless document hidden inside a beat-up picture frame? “That could be me,” we are supposed to think, and right on cue, we do.

Shipwreck Filled With Roman 'Ketchup' Discovered off Italy's Coast : Archaeologists recently discovered a Roman shipwreck off the coast of northeastern Italy that dates back to the 1st or 2nd century CE. Unlike other recent aquatic finds such as the Spanish galleon San Jose, this submerged craft wasn’t laden with gold, jewels, or other precious relics. Instead, The Local reports that it once contained 3000 jars of a fermented fish sauce called garum—a condiment that’s considered the “ketchup” of the ancient Mediterranean.